‘Empire’ Grows Yet Again As Season Finale Approaches

With only three more weeks left to its freshman season, Empire is still growing.

For the seventh week in a row, the Fox drama clocked another series high ? rising to a 5.3 rating among adults 18-49. That’s technically even with last week’s final score, but two-tenths of an improvement from last Wednesday’s Fast Nationals. And with a minute of lower-rated American Idol bleeding into Fox’s 9 p.m. hour, last night’s Empire is all but sure to be adjusted upwards.

As for total viewership, Empire rose to 13.75 million viewers ? making it the most-watched telecast of the night.

Empire’s growth continues to leave many scratching their heads. Seven consecutive weeks of improvement for a freshman series in unheard of these days. Up 39 percent from its premiere, it has now grown more than any broadcast drama since House in 2004. For Fox, it will only be able to get three more Wednesdays out of the show. Four hours of the freshman order remain, with a two-hour finale slated for March 18.

As for American Idol, the show was steady with a 2.6 rating among adults 18-49 ??now less than half of its lead-out’s haul.